Human Development in Latin America

In this course, we will learn about the multidimensional concept of Human Development, established by the United Nations, inspired by the conceptual ideas of the economist Nobel Prize winner Amartya Sen. Focused on the Latin American region. The course will show the new development perspectives, breaking the paradigm that this can only be achieved through economic growth. We will study how Human Development seeks more holistic growth, considering health, culture, education, and the environment. To understand this new development approach, we will trace the thought changes in the historical framework from post-World War II to the present. We will track the thought evolution of evaluating development strictly economic approach to human development as the key to improving living conditions. Also, we will learn how the human development index (HDI) helps evaluate the progress many countries around the world have achieved using this new approach. We will focus on the HDI of Latin America, so we will analyze the opportunities and challenges the region has related to the quality of life and wellbeing of its inhabitants.